Lando Norris
McLaren
Mercedes
Red Bull
Ferrari
Williams
Racing Bulls
Aston Martin
Haas
Alpine
Nico Rosberg says F1 world champion Lando Norris needs to stop being so ‘nice’ when he’s racing Max Verstappen.
A rivalry has developed between Norris and Verstappen in the last two years given their leading roles in the F1 title race.
Verstappen held off Norris to win the 2024 championship, while the Red Bull driver came up just two points short when the roles were reversed last season.
Which Max Verstappen move deserved a HARSHER penalty? 👮♂️
He's been involved in some controversial incidents over the years
Why Lando Norris needs to ’cause a crash’ with Max Verstappen
Verstappen and Norris collided while battling for victory at the 2024 Austrian GP, a move that earned the Red Bull driver a penalty and ended the McLaren star’s race.
Later, in the United States, Norris was penalised for overtaking Verstappen outside the bounds of the race track. A week on in Mexico, the Dutchman was docked 20 seconds for two further run-ins in a matter of corners.
It could be argued that Norris hasn’t shown the ruthlessness required to pass Verstappen, but he has encountered some controversial defensive driving.
Rosberg can relate to the British driver, having had to become ‘tougher’ during his own career when up against Lewis Hamilton. He actually thinks that Norris needs to ’cause a crash’ so Verstappen dials down the aggression in their battles.
Nico Rosberg thinks Lando Norris needs to be much more aggressive against Max Verstappen. Is Norris too nice, or just sensible?
“The real Nico Rosberg is way too nice,” he explained on the High Performance Podcast. “I had to push and be tougher sometimes, even though it didn’t come naturally to me.
“Again, you have the same example with Lando. Generally, people will say he’s just too nice.
“In wheel-to-wheel battle, he has always lost against Max in the last few years. Every wheel-to-wheel battle against Max, he lost out.
“What Lando needs to do once is just hold his ground, cause a crash, and that will send a message to Max: ‘he’s changing, he’s becoming more ferocious, maybe I need to calm it down a bit next time against him’.”
The consensus in F1 is that Charles Leclerc commands the most respect from Verstappen in wheel-to-wheel scenarios. The two drivers know one another extremely well, having first raced in karting.
Even Lewis Hamilton has been accused of moving too easily for Verstappen, though the two drivers have collided multiple times in the past.
Receive exclusive F1 news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
